Bruno Waterfield has been the Brussels correspondent for the Telegraph since 2007. He has been reporting on politics and European affairs for over 13 years, first from Westminster and then from Brussels since January 2003.

Czechs leave Irish isolated on EU Treaty

There is only one group of people who can, and should be trusted, with deciding on political issues such as European Union treaties. It is the people, not the judges.

Ireland stands alone

The Czech Constitutional Court ruled on Wednesday that the Lisbon Treaty conforms to national law, clearing the way for the country's parliament to proceed with ratification.

"The Lisbon Treaty does not run counter to the constitutional order," said Pavel Rychetsky, the court's chairman.

The Czech parliamentary route will not be easy but is pretty much assured, meaning that, barring technicalities or formalities (such as the country's President Václav Klaus signing it off), Ireland is all alone.

The quarantine, isolate and pressure strategy – aided and abetted by Gordon Brown – is running to plan. Dublin is expected to announce a second referendum in the coming week or so, backing a recommendation from the country's parliament, leaked here.

It is wrong for unelected judges to be involved in politics and Europe's constitutional judiciary has played a key role in railroading the Treaty though – in Denmark, the Netherlands and now the Czech Republic.

The issue of a referendum, or not, is a political not a legal or technical question. It is not up to judges or officials to decide if governments have broken promises, over EU referendums, or anything else. It is up to voters.

Unfortunately the constitutional role of judges in deciding on EU matters has been reinforced by some Eurosceptics, who are a litigious bunch.

No doubt some political cretins, if no one objects to the term too much, are still holding out hopes that German judges will sink Lisbon after the traditional challenge from the right wing Bavarian MP Peter Gauweiler. Get real.

The trend to hand over political decisions over to the experts – whether it is British judges and civil servants or European judges and civil servants – is the same tendency that has created the EU of the 21st century.

A second Irish vote will be a major obstacle for the EU Constitution Lisbon Treaty and for Britons next year's European elections must be turned into a referendum. There is no alternative.